Wire-fence barb



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GALEB BRIN'ION, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

WIRE-FENCE BARB.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 241,841, dated May 24, 1881.

Application filed February 5, 1880.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CALEB BRIN'roN, of Chicago. Oook county, State of Illinois, have invented an Improvement in Barbs for Wire Fences, and in the manner of securing them thereto, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this speciation, in which- Figure 1 is a longitudinal section through a barb in its bent form as punched out of a bent plate of metal in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 represents the barb placed upon a wire and before beingsecured thereto. Fig. 3 is my said barb straightened and secured in place upon the wire. Fig. 4 is a front elevation of my improved barb. Figs. 5, 6, and 7 refer to a slight modification of my invention.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand and use my invention, I will proceed to describe the manner in which I have carried it out.

From a bent sheet of metal, of the desired form in cross-section, l punch out a series of blanks, after which each one is perforated at its center by a conically-poinled instrument, which leaves the blank of the form ot' a bent perforated barb, A, (see Fig. 1,) ready to be applied to a wire, B, which is preferably of softer metal than the barb, the pointed conical instrument, while making the central perforation,a, also leaving a burr or lip, b, around it on the inner or concave side. The bent barb A is now placed upon the wire B, Fig. 2,and is secured thereto atthe desired place by straightening the barb, so that its two opposite portions are made to lie in one and the same plane, Fig. 3. Tile straightening ofthe bent barb, Fig. 2, produces a contraction ot' the perforation on its convex side, and the burr or lip on its concave side being swaged down upon and slightly entering the softer metal of the wire,

the barb is prevented from being moved either laterally or longitudinally thereon.

Figs. 5, 6, and 7 show my improved doublepointed barbs slightly chan ged in form, in order that a pair of them may be applied to the wire at the same point. The blank is punched out of a bent sheet of metal of about the same form as that from which the blank or barb A, Fig. l, is produced, with the addition only of two shoulders, d. Two of the bent barbs thus formed are placed on the wire, and are brought into contact with their two concave surfaces or shoulders d fitting and locking together. The two barbs are now straightened and the burrs or lips b on their outer or convex sides swaged down, so as to slightly indent and penetrate the wire B sufliciently to prevent any longitudinal displacement.

In some cases, where the shouldered barbs are applied to the wire in pairs,it may not be necessary to swage the lips on their outer sides down thereon, as the contraction ot' the perforations on their inner sides may produce sufficient friction to bind and hold them in place; but where a secure attachment is desired I prefer also to swage down the lips.

I claim- 1. The angular double-pointed barb A, bent as shown, and provided with a single circular perforation made centrally therein, substantially as specified.

2. The method of securin g the angular doublepointed perforated barb A to the Wire B by first applying it thereto, then bending it straight, which produces acontraction of the perforation c on its convex side, thus causing it to bind the wire D, and finally swaging the lip b on the concave side of the barb down thereon, substantially as described.

OALEB BRINTON.

Witnesses:

F. S. EASTMAN, CHARLES D. FREEMAN. 

